“Empty” NATO promises lead to outbursts of anger: Selenski bites the hand that feeds him

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How do you say the same? Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (45) already did this on Tuesday. He reached the NATO summit in Vilnius in the hope of getting the green light for Ukraine to join NATO. And was bitterly disappointed.

Selenski vented his anger on Twitter. The fact that no time frame has been set for an invitation is “unprecedented and absurd,” he writes. Hesitation is “a weakness”.

Several NATO diplomats told the Washington Post that Selenski likely used the tweet as a negotiating tactic. Between the lines: more needs to be done for Ukraine. His tweet caused frowns in Vilnius. After all, NATO has already done a lot for Ukraine.

Since the beginning of the war, NATO has supported its member states in arming Ukraine. According to data from the Kieler Institute for the World Economy, a German think tank, NATO members provided a total of at least $150 billion in financial, humanitarian and military aid during the first year of the war. In addition, massive sanctions were imposed on the Russian economy and the Russian state.

Most military support is organized bilaterally, rather than through NATO, to avoid fueling “Russia versus NATO” thinking. Nevertheless, individual NATO members have pledged nearly $50 billion in military aid to Ukraine – or “more than eight combat brigades” – including air defense systems, heavy artillery, modern main battle tanks and now training for Ukrainian fighter jet pilots.

NATO leaders on Tuesday opened the door a little further to Ukraine by offering the country an accelerated path to membership. “We reaffirmed that Ukraine will join NATO and agreed to remove the requirement for a membership action plan. This would change Ukraine’s accession process from a two-stage process to a one-stage process,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (64).

A schedule, as demanded by Selenski, is not mentioned. Instead means in a statement that Kyiv needs to complete further reforms in democratic standards and in the security sector in addition to the war.

Despite further assurances and security promises, the NATO summit in Vilnius was disappointing for Zelenskiy and many observers. Ukraine remains in limbo rather than getting a clear message. In Selenski’s words, “Is that too much to ask?”

According to “Spiegel”, many summit participants expect violent clashes and public beatings to take place on the second day of the summit. For the president of Ukraine, it seems that biting the hand that feeds you is okay if it underfeeds you.

Source: Blick